09 January 2013

The Joy of Writing a First Draft

My hope in providing you the prompts in The Plot Whisperer Book of Writing Prompts: Easy Exercises to Get You Writing is that you'll have an incentive everyday to write forward without going back. Following one prompt at a time is meant to eliminate the need to run back to the beginning rather than face a blank page and instead to fill that page with words.

The joy of writing a first draft is that you don't have to worry if your scenes are too long or not long enough, if the character is likable, the action compelling. For now, your task is to show up everyday and generate words on the page. This is the generative stage when you're most closely linked to the muse unlike subsequent drafts when the critic and editor come into play. Have fun with this first draft.

You may find that the first 4 prompts all contribute to one scene or perhaps have stimulated your imagination to write three separate scenes. Don't judge what you've done as right or wrong. Don't judge your writing as superficial or cliched. For now, simply write.

Today, I write.

If you're following along and wish to comment or ask questions, please use Twitter and be sure to include @plotwhisperer and #pwprompt to catch my attention.

The Plot Whisperer Book of Writing Prompts: Easy Exercises to Get You Writing gives you the inspiration and motivation you need to finish every one of your writing projects. This book guides you through each stage of the writing process, from constructing compelling characters to establishing an unforgettable ending. The book also helps you get into the habit of writing creatively every day, with brand-new imaginative prompts for how to write a novel, memoir, screenplay with a plot. 

Join me here everyday as together we write our stories from page one and through all the prompts to the very end.

To familiarize yourself with the basic plot terms used here and in the PW Book of Prompts:
1) Watch the plot playlists on the Plot Whisperer Youtube channel.
2) Read The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of Story Structure Any Writer Can Master
3) Fill out the exercises in The Plot Whisperer Workbook: Step-by-Step Exercises to Help You Create Compelling Stories
4) Visit:
Blockbuster Plots for Writers
Plot Whisperer on Facebook

Plot Whisperer on Twitter